#belsayhall

DEFENSIVE HOME OF THE MIDDLETONS
Posting this shot from yesterday's visit to Belsay Hall in Northumberland and after exploring the delights of the quarry Garden, it was the ruins of Belsay Castle next, looking stunning in the late summer sunshine.
The 14th-century medieval castle is a Scheduled Monument and a Grade I listed building.
It began life during troubled times in the English/Scottish borders, around 1370 as a rectangular 'pele tower' with turrets and battlements and home to the Middleton family.
In later years Thomas Middleton added on a manor house in 1614.
Further alterations were added and demolished with the castle finally abandoned as a family residence early in the 19th century when owner Sir Charles Monck built a new residence, Belsay Hall, close by.
#england #northumberland #belsayhall #belsaycastle #englishheritage #historical #september #summer #photography

Heading towards the final fortnight of summer and catching the warm sunlight spilling into the Quarry Garden at Belsay Hall in Northumberland this afternoon.
The Quarry Garden, as its name might suggest, is a garden that was created across the site of an old quarry and the source of the sandstone used to build Belsay Hall and many buildings in the nearby village.
The Quarry Garden is well-known as having its own microclimate, allowing many exotic plants to flourish alongside stunning rhododendrons.
Belsay Hall lies a few miles north of Ponteland and is in the care of English Heritage.
#england #northumberland #belsayhall #englishheritage #historical #garden #september #summer #photography